Timing: Thursday downpours take aim on southern Ontario
theweathernetwork.com
Thursday, August 9, 2018, 8:07 AM - A cold front cutting through southern Ontario on Thursday will bring yet another round of potentially torrential rainfall to the increasingly-soggy region. As they did with Tuesday's Toronto deluge, lake breezes may play a key role in who sees the strongest storms, as it seems likely breezes will set up off of lakes Erie and Ontario before the main front reaches the southern tier of the province.
Setting aside the risk for further flooding, this front may be good news for many, as it sweeps away cloudy skies -- and a lot of our humidity -- as we head into the weekend. We take a look at Thursday's active front, and a look ahead at what stands to be some great mid-August weekend weather, below.
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WEATHER HIGHLIGHTS:
- One more round of storms across southern Ontario Thursday
- Potential for torrential downpours and gusty winds with some storm cells
- Clearer and less humid going into the weekend
WATCH BELOW: ANOTHER BLAST OF RAIN THURSDAY
THURSDAY STORMS -- TORRENTIAL DOWNPOURS RETURN
The approaching cold front will trigger storms across parts of cottage country through the early afternoon, and these storms will become more widespread as the front slides southeastward, with the line expected to be moving through the Ottawa to Montreal corridor through the late afternoon, and rolling into the GTA around dinnertime. The tail end of the front is a little slower in the southwest; cells are expected to be working their way south between London and Windsor from the evening rush hour through midnight.
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While cells through the evening will be battling diminishing energy with the setting sun, they may get an extra boost from lingering lake breezes, particularly in the southwest. While it's hard to tell if the front - lake breeze interaction will lead to any situations like the slow-moving complex of storms that drenched parts of Toronto on Tuesday, it's not out of the question.
Storms clear the province through the overnight hours, and a breath of fresh air slides in behind them.
A WELCOME BREATH OF FRESH AIR
Clear skies and near-normal temperatures (that's mid-20s for this time of the year) dominate on Friday -- along with a welcome cut in humidity as winds shift to be generally out of the northwest. This trend sticks with us into Saturday, in what could be one of the most pleasant weekends of the season, particularly up over cottage country. While we can expect gradually rebuilding humidity, humidex values will be much more reasonable than some of the feels-like-40s that marked the long weekend.
It's not all sunshine, however. With that rebuilding humidity comes the risk of isolated showers and thunderstorms, particularly across the southwest and through the Niagara Peninsula. It might be a good weekend to get away, though -- as you head north into cottage country, the risk for showers diminishes.
That building humidity will continue into the new week, with more humid and unsettled weather on the way as Ontarians head back to work.
Check back for updates as we continue to monitor the forecast.
